Money Matters

In an age where technology has connected society more than ever before, one thing stands to divide us, as insidious as it is mundane: money. This topic is explored through a variety of mediums by over thirty international artists in “The Soul of Money,” an exhibition at the Dox Centre for Contemporary Art.

Though we may not be aware of the roles we play, we are all contributors to this powerful global machine. Many countries have continued to prosper economically, but this has culminated in a tremendous financial inequality to the point that half of the world’s wealth is controlled by just 1% of the population. “The Soul of Money,” curated by Leoš Válka, focuses not only on capital as a commodity, but as a driving factor of some of the darkest industries in the world.

From nooses made of US dollars to origami pigs crafted out of massive two-dollar bills, the sentiments expressed in the various sculptures of the exhibit are darkly humorous, yet blatantly symbolic. A highlight is “The Supermarket of the Dead,” an installation by Wolfgang Scheppe that features paper recreations of consumer goods ranging from Gucci designer bags to sushi. These items are used for the Chinese ritual of burning traditional objects as a gift to the departed, thus Scheppe plays on consumerism (even for the dead) in his sprawling piece located on the second floor.

The photographers, meanwhile, presented a much grimmer reality of the lengths some must go to in order to survive. Richard Jones’ depiction of the Philippine Organ Trade captures the often faceless victims of the black market industry. On “Kidney Island,” a small region in a country where much of the population lives on less than a dollar a day, men young and old receive 1,500 Euros for kidneys and other organs, giving new meaning to the term “blood money.”

The great white space that houses the exhibit is brimming with canvases, sculpture, film, photography—different mediums all communicating a similar message. But a quote from business magnate George Soros, which is emblazoned on one of the walls may say it best: “As long as capitalism remains triumphant, the pursuit of money overrides all other social considerations.”